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Huey P. Long Bridge expansion celebration kicks off Thursday

Huey P. Long Bridge widening in 2012

The $1.2 billion expansion of the Huey P. Long Bridge will be celebrated during events that start Thursday. Construction workers greet officials as they drive across the new east bound lanes of the Huey P. Long Bridge in April 2012.
(NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune file photo)

From discussions on its history to a second-line parade up the east bank ramp, the Huey P. Long Bridge re-dedication, marking a $1.2 billion expansion, gets underway Thursday. "The Legendary Huey P. Long Bridge Symposium'' kicks off events Thursday at 9 a.m. at the Old U.S. Mint, 400 Esplanade Ave., New Orleans.

The daylong seminar, which is free to the public, will delve into the bridge's history, the modernization of the Depression-era span and Gov. Huey Long's influence. Among the featured speakers are William Conway of Modjeski and Masters, the firm that designed the bridge and its improvements; engineer Tonja Koob, who recently published a book, "The Huey P. Long Bridge,'' and Leon Miller, curator of Long's papers at Tulane University. Participants at the seminar also will have access to bridge artifacts and memorabilia.

The main celebration happens Sunday, when runners and walkers cross the span in a 5-kilometer road race at 8 a.m. The second line begins at 10 a.m., in which the "'35ers,'' residents who crossed the bridge when it opened in 1935, will be honored. Those events take place on the new Jefferson Highway ramp on the east bank.

For more information on the activities, visit hueypbridge.com, http://www.facebook.com/hueypbridge or http://www.twitter.com/hueypbridge. Information on the road race may be found at hueyprun.com.